The ninth-ranked Spartans (6-2, 1-0 Big Ten) will wrap up their two-game dip into conference play Monday with a visit from Iowa. Tipoff at Breslin Center in East Lansing is at 6:30 p.m. (FS1).

Here are three things to watch.

Giveaway over

MSU opened Big Ten play on Friday with a 78-67 win at Rutgers in which the Spartans drastically cut down on their turnovers.

After committing 41 turnovers in its previous two games, MSU equaled a season-low with seven against the Scarlet Knights. That included just two in the first half — both on charging fouls — after coughing it up 11 times in the first 20 minutes against both Texas and Louisville.

That included 40 combined minutes of turnover-free basketball by point guards Cassius Winston and Foster Loyer. Winston, the junior starter, finished with a team-high 22 points and six assists in his 35 minutes, while freshman Loyer came off the bench and played 5 minutes.

The Spartans continued to be without guard Matt McQuaid, who is their backup point guard, and coach Tom Izzo told reporters after the game he did not expect their senior co-captain to play Monday against the Hawkeyes.

Re-Ward

It was at Rutgers last year where Nick Ward got benched and began to express his frustration in the locker room before being cut off by Izzo.

A year changed everything.

The 6-9 junior forward dove after loose balls, moved his feet on defense and flashed a deft scoring touch around the basket Friday night — leaving Izzo glowing about the difference.

Ward finished with 20 points and five rebounds, making 7 of 12 shots in the game. It was his third 20-point performance this season, and Ward enters Monday's game averaging 14.6 points and 5.6 rebounds with 10 assists and nine blocked shots.

Iowa rising

The Hawkeyes dropped their Big Ten opener at home against Wisconsin, 72-66. Iowa shot just 39 percent from the field and went just 6 of 24 from 3-point range against the Badgers. Tyler Cook led the Hawkeyes with 19 points and 15 rebounds, while Jordan Bohannon and Luka Garza each scored 11.

They had won their first six games to open the regular season, including a 19-point thrashing of Connecticut to win the 2K Empire Classic at Madison Square Garden last month.

Cook, a 6-foot-9 junior forward, leads Iowa with 15.4 points and 8.1 rebounds per game. Three other starters are scoring in double figures.

Prediction

MSU 78, Iowa 68: The Spartans want to come out fast and exert their tempo against the Hawkeyes. Ward needs to stay out of foul trouble while guarding Cook, and Winston also needs to maintain his composure against the heady and veteran Iowa guards.